Packing!

Well, I finally had my going away party- and I have to say that it was actually pretty fun. :)

Im not normally a party kind of person, and I generally don't like all of the attention of parties- but it was good to be able to spend one last night with all of my friends together. I even had a little basket with notecards so that people could write me little silly notes of advice or just random things that they wanted to tell me. It was pretty hilarious reading some of them, and I have to say that I had to guess a little bit to try and see who-wrote-what. ;)

Today I officially received my Visa/ Residence Card and final flight itinerary; which means that this is all really happening for real! Its crazy!!!

This morning I made my packing list, and it was actually kind of hard to decide on what I was going to take with me. I want to bring a lot, but at the same time I want to leave my bags as empty as I can, so that I can bring home a lot without having to ship it back home or pay for extra baggage at the end of my year.

I decided to create a little post about the whole process of packing as an exchange student and what its like. (At least from my point of view...)

So far the whole process of it is an absolute pain. You have to create your packing list, and then from there decide on what you will eliminate from your list, and what you will bring. (Clothes is the hardest part for me. I like my clothes. A lot. And therefore, I do not want to eliminate any from my packing list. BUT, unfortunately, I have a lot to pack, and so it looks as if the odds are not exactly in my favor.) :(

I am packing two different suitcases, and I am checking one and bringing the other with me on my flight, along with my backpack. So, I need to put all of my liquids and such into my larger suitcase rather than the smaller one. (Which wasn't my idea, because I wanted to put all of my liquids into my smaller bag.) :P

Anyways, back to the packing list...

I tried to sit down and really, REALLY think about what essentials I needed to bring with me; and what I couldn't live without for the next 11 months. (Other than clothes.)

•  Point-and-Shoot Camera.

• My Nikon camera

•  "Thank You" cards

•  A photo album of my friends/family and place I live

•  Family and American recipes

• American Foods and Candies to share  

•  My pillow pet

•  Rotary pins for other exchange students

• My dance shoes

•  Plug Converter

• Guitar manuscript paper and my capo

• Journal

These are just a few little examples that are on my packing list. Its weird though, because packing up your bedroom into two suitcases just feels...weird. I cant find another word to explain it! (It has been over an hour, and the only thing in my suitcase so far is a T-Shirt...)

I am super excited to go on my exchange, but at the same time its a little scary thinking that this time next week, I will be sitting in a classroom full of exchange students in my same exact situation at language camp in Finland. And then this time in two weeks, I will be in Oulu sitting in a classroom full of Finnish students going to High School, attending class.

Its weird because I have realized that while my friends are out shopping for new calculators and pencils, and receiving their school schedules for the Fall; I will be already living in another country, attending High School in a language I don't speak, learning a language that I have never actually studied before, and living with a family who I haven't met before.

Its a little scary.

Maybe even more than a little bit.

But I am more excited than scared, and I know that this will be an amazing adventure!


“The one who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The one who walks alone, is likely to find himself in places no one has ever been.” ~ Albert Einstein